Callie instructed the driver to drop them as close to the entrance as possible. Arizona paid the cabbie and scooped her prizes up into her arms again. Heads turned to stare as they walked through the revolving doors. They had been the talk of the convention for so many reasons already, any embarrassment Callie might have felt was long gone. It was almost two thirty; they still had thirty minutes before the scavenger hunt was due to start. Callie had had such an amazing day but then every day this week with Arizona had felt like an adventure.

Back in Arizona's suite Callie let her body fall to the bed, Arizona joined her dropping her toys on top of Callie who held up her arm in protection, shielding Mr Gimpy from the avalanche. "We didn't get a bowl, he needs a bowl" she said absentmindly stroking Arizona's matted curls.

"Can't very well take a bowl onto an airplane, he'll be ok, we'll get him a super special tank when we get back with a castle and a ship and one of those plastic hideaway rock thingys!"

"And a deep sea diver!" Callie offered

"No he's timid, one of those would scare him, be sensible Calliope"

"Me be sensible? You're the one attaching complex emotions to a goldfish" Callie laughed, nothing about their day could have been considered remotely sensible.

"He has got feelings, he's a fighter, look he's getting some colour back. And he's smart; I've taught him to swim backwards"

"I think that's motion sickness not intelligence…"

Arizona swiped the bag from Callie's hand ignoring her comment "He needs a mate, don't want him getting lonely"

"We'll get him a Miss Gimpy when we're home"

Arizona placed the fish on the bed and turned herself around snuggling into Callie. If she was honest she didn't really want to take part in the hunt, she would much rather spend the rest of the afternoon alone with Callie doing all of the things she'd been dreaming about this morning.

"We should shower" Callie said

"Yeah thanks to someone's evil choice of attraction I'm, for the second day in a row, covered in just gross"

"Wanna shower together?" Callie asked running her hand under Arizona's top stroking the small of her back.

"As tempting as that sounds I'm gunno say no. I plan to take my time with you tonight"

"Tonight? Presume much!"

"Am I wrong?" Arizona asked playfully.

Callie lifted Arizona's face from her chest, brown eyes locking on blue "No you are very, very right."

Arizona showered quickly and arrived at the grounds early. She knew Callie was running late so she decided to see if she could find Jill and help with any last minute preparation. Jill was by the pool crouched down arranging the treasure hunt baskets, she looked stressed.

"You alright?" Arizona asked.

"Yeah" she replied without looking up.

"You don't sound so sure, what's up?"

"It's nothing, really, just tired, busy morning"

Arizona knelt down beside Jill, she felt guilty. She should have been there to help like she was every year "Is there anything I can do?"

"No it's all good, in fact why don't you and Callie bail, go to the beach or something and enjoy the Miami sunshine"

Arizona watched her friend; something about the way she spoke hinted to Arizona that this wasn't a polite offer but more of a pleading request. Jill's hands fussed busily over the baskets that were already perfectly placed and prepared. Her eyes darted nervously, looking everywhere else besides at Arizona. Something was definitely bothering her and it wasn't in Jill's nature to be evasive. She wore her heart on her sleeve and was the sort of person to say exactly what was on her mind, especially if she was angry or upset. Arizona placed her hands over Jill's stopping her "Ok spill it, your acting weird, what's up? Have I done something to make you mad?"

Jill's eyes softened, finally meeting Arizona's "No, you've done nothing wrong"

"Then why so distant, and why are you trying to get me to skip out on the treasure hunt?"

Jill was quiet for a moment "Had a bit of a run in with David earlier"

"Ok…"

"He's been saying things Zona, nasty stuff, have you spoken to anyone else today?"

"No, we only got back from the fair like half hour ago" Arizona paused "Why?"

"I overheard Kerry talking, well I say overheard, I think she wanted me to hear"

"And?" Arizona pushed not liking Jill's worried expression.

"Hell Zone, words got back to Chief Nicholson about you and Callie" Jill looked back down at her baskets.

"My chief?"

"Yeah"

"Ok, well it's not like my sexuality is a big secret"

"No but he's heard things from David. You know his father and your chief go way back right?"

Arizona nodded not liking the direction this conversation was headed.

"David called him and told him about your 'behaviour' this week. Really stuck the knife in by all accounts"

"My behaviour? What the hell, I haven't done anything!"

"I know but that's not the story he told. Said you've been blowing off seminars and activities, and that on the rare occasions you have been there you and Callie were nothing but inappropriate"

"What? I've missed one seminar, and apart from the incident at the relay track, nothing I've done could be deemed in the least bit inappropriate"

Arizona could feel her blood pressure rising and it took all her self control not to scream with rage

"I know, but the way David tells it makes it all sound so sordid. According to Kerry your chief is furious, says you're a respected surgeon and that you are paid to attend these conventions as a learning opportunity not to and I quote David now 'whore it around'. The way he was talking about you Zone makes it sound like you were fucking in full view of everyone or something."

Arizona felt physically sick, her hands were shaking. She had been having such a wonderful day, why did a prick like David have to go and ruin it. "I'm going to kill him, physically going to choke the life outta him" she spat.

"Your gunno need to pick a number. Like I said, we've already had words none of which were pleasant he's even threatening to make a complaint about me; it's all such a joke"

"You shouldn't have done that Jill"

"Yes I damn well should have. You're my friend and you've done nothing wrong, I'm not about to stand on the sidelines while he slanders your reputation with vapid lies, you'd have done the same thing in my position and you know it"

"What should I do? Calling Nicholson would probably be pointless. He's a proud member of the old boys club, a born again homophobe. But he's never had a problem with me before, he made me head of Peds for God sake, but then I guess I never gave him any reason until now"

"You've done NOTHING wrong Arizona; you need to keep that in your head ok? David may have connections but you have something he doesn't, the truth on your side"

Arizona laughed "God Jill that sounded like something you'd hear in a cheesy eighties movie"

Jill smiled "Yeah well least it got a laugh…are you ok?"

"No not really…kinda in shock to be honest…why would he do this?"

"Wounded male pride"

"Pathetic" Arizona shook her head still unable to process all that she'd heard.

"Everyone knows these conventions aren't to be taken too seriously, they're just a bit of fun. We spent one afternoon playing fricking operation, yeah dead serious! And as for you 'whoring it around' that's complete crap. In the last four years I've never seen you so much as look at woman like that until now. The only thing that Nicholson could pull you on is what happened at the relay race and even that was tame, hardly a sackable offence and has no bearing whatsoever on how you perform your job. There's no written rule that you can't hook up at these conventions it happens all the time, this whole thing is hypocritical bullshit. Makes me wonder if you were seen getting it on with a guy would there still be a problem?"

"Probably not, but I'm not just hooking up Jill, I like Calliope, I really like her. It's not a fling."

"I know that. I've seen the way you guys look at each other and how happy she makes you. Don't you, for one second, let a bigot like David mess that up!"

"I won't. And I don't regret a single thing that's happened and I don't give a flying fuck what David or anyone else thinks…"

"But?"

"How did you know there was a but?"

"I know you"

"But…Nicholson's my boss. He has all the power and holds all the cards and as you know confrontation between me and authority don't mix well"

"He can't fire you for being gay Arizona, that's all kinds of illegal"

"No, but he can make my professional life hell. I've just gotto brave it out be strong and tell my side of things. I'm not going to let him make me feel guilty or degrade what I have with Callie, I'd sooner quit!"

"You're falling in love with her aren't you?"

"Would you call me crazy if I said I think so?"

"No I would think you were very sane"

People were starting to gather around the pool area, Arizona sighed "Well as much as I appreciate your concern I'm not gunno hide away this afternoon and avoid people. I'm going to take part in the hunt like I do every year, to hell with what people think, I just hope Calliope's ok with all of this and that David has the good sense to stay away from me until it's finished. I won't be held accountable for my actions if he doesn't."

"I don't blame you. If it helps I think I scared the crap outta him earlier, not so tough without an audience to support him"

"Thanks Jill, you're awesome. People like you are karma's way of apologising for people like him" Arizona said pulling Jill into a tight embrace "Love you"

"Love you too Zone"

Callie paced the grass unable to believe what she was hearing "He actually called you a whore?"

"Apparently so" Arizona was sat on one of the hotel steps watching Callie.

"And he called your boss to what, tell on you?"

Arizona nodded.

"How can you be so calm?"

"I'm not calm Calliope not even close. I'm fucking furious, every time I think about work I feel like I'm gunno vomit, but I can't show it, can't let David and his idiot friends know they've got to me. He wants me to react but if I do that just adds to his case against me. I'll be reprimanded for being violent as well as a slut."

Callie winced at her words; the thought of anyone saying those sorts of things about Arizona made her ache inside. She wanted to protect her from people like that, but she knew the damage was already done "You're not a slut Arizona and he can't just be allowed to say whatever the hell he wants"

"I know, but what can I do? I stay quiet he wins, I say something and he wins again…how do you feel about all of this?"

"Me? Every bit as angry as you"

"No I mean how do you feel about what might be said about you? How your chief might react if he hears?"

Callie smiled wearily at Arizona taking a seat beside her "Seattle Grace is different from Mercy West, it's different from most hospitals. Webber, my chief, well he's different too. He's a good man and doesn't abide prejudice. Even if he did hear about this through the grapevine he wouldn't take it seriously, he isn't the type of man to listen to gossip. And if I'm honest he didn't authorise my coming here to work, he was doing me a kindness, he could see how awful things were, how messy my divorce was, I think both him and Sloan – sorry Mark, thought I needed a break. If anything he'll be happy I've found some happiness and a distraction"

"Is that all that I am?" Damn it Arizona thought, she hadn't meant to sound so bitter.

"No God, I didn't mean it like that, I wasn't…"

"I know you didn't, sorry I didn't mean to snap, I'm just so mad Callie…How will the rest of your colleagues react?"

"Seattle Grace is kinda highly sexed. The on call rooms aren't exactly used for sleeping. Our head of neuro is sleeping with a resident as was our old cardio god. Pretty much everyone has slept with everyone else" Callie laughed.

"Sounds interesting!"

"You could say that. There's always a story, this will just be another. Even more so cause you're a woman. Whatever gossip reaches them they'll find it too funny to judge. Seriously, you don't need to worry about me. It's not my character that's under attack." Callie felt guilty, she was lucky, everything she'd said about Seattle Grace was true and she knew that no matter how bad the gossip nothing bad would come of it. She just wished she could say the same about Mercy West. "So… what are we gunno do then?"

"We are going to play the hunt Calliope and we are going to win."

Callie and Arizona joined the mass of people crowded around the starting point, already with their baskets in hand. They had missed the first half of Jill's instructions but it didn't matter, Arizona was well versed in the procedure. Everyone had split into pairs and were eagerly awaiting the start command. Arizona spotted David and Andrew standing a few feet to the side of Jill. Ripples of anger knotted her stomach, something about the way he was grinning gave her the urge to find the nearest brick and smack him with it. He looked so smug, he obviously felt no remorse over the spiteful lies he'd spread. For all she knew she might not have a job to go back to anymore and he was just standing there, hands in his pockets laughing and joking without a care in the world. Jill finished her briefing and asked the crowd if they had any questions. Arizona heard David shout something Jill's way, she smiled as Jill looked straight through him ignoring his question. She really was an awesome friend. Callie noticed the hairs on Arizona's neck prickle and she followed the blonde's eye line locking eyes with David. He smiled at Callie flashing perfectly white teeth. It wasn't a kind smile; it was sarcastic and didn't reach his cold eyes. If looks could really kill Callie would have switched her profession to staring. She wondered how on earth she was going to refrain from doing that face some permanent damage. She thought of Mark again and laughed, if she messed his face up her friend could reattach it for him inside out. David pulled his gaze away nudging Andrew who caught Callie's eyes briefly before dipping his head. At least he had the decency to avoid confrontation she thought. Of the thirty or so people around them at least half looked Callie and Arizona's way making little attempt to hide their obvious interest. Callie took Arizona's hand in her own squeezing it tightly. She knew, despite Arizona's calm façade, that the staring and hushed whispers were getting under her skin. These people were supposed to be grown ups and many, Callie guessed, Arizona's friends.

"Think how pathetic their own lives must be if all they can do is chat shit about yours"

Callie turned to the young woman beside them who she recognised as one of Jill's friends who they had had dinner with the previous evening. Arizona turned to her right noticing Jenny "Oh hey Jen, sorry what did you say?"

"Them" she said motioning with her eyes "Pathetic"

"Yeah that's one word"

"Well if it makes you feel any better none of us want anything to do with that lot anymore" Jenny said nodding her head in Kerry's direction "It's like bloody high school, they're all a bunch of sheep, heard the whole story from Jill, couldn't believe it, it's disgusting what he did not to mention underhanded"

"Thanks, but don't cut them out on our account"

Jenny laughed "Oh don't worry, none of us could really stand the guy before and this gives us the perfect excuse. None of us will ever again have to be subjected to another one of his boring stories…you know Jill's going to refuse his application for next year"

"Can she really do that" Arizona asked "I know she's like super coordinator gal and all but does she really have the power to ban him from the convention?"

"Well not officially but she's adored here, everybody loves her and she has her ways. You know Jill, if she wants something badly enough she'll find a way to make it happen, kinda like you" Jenny said pocking Arizona in the ribs.

"Yeah, right now I'm wishing for an earthquake to open up and swallow him whole"

"Ha, we've been wishing that for years Zone. Anyways good luck with the hunt, make sure you kick David and Andrew's ass and may the best woman win" Jenny replied grabbing Michael's arm and leading him off.

"Guess we should get a basket" Arizona said, heading for the nearly deserted table area.

"Yeah…" Callie placed a hand on Arizona's arm stopping her "You sure you're up for this?"

"No not really, but I came here to have fun and that's exactly what I'm gunno do. If I think about the situation, about my chief, my head's gunno explode so instead I'm going to smile, go get our basket, focus on the game and think about the awesome tank we're gunno get Mr Gimpy when we get home ok? Ignorance is bliss right?"

"That's what they say, no wonder David it's always so happy…what's the prize for winning this thing anyway?"

"What aside from the fame and glory? I dunno, I normally do the prize shopping so it's usually pretty awesome, last year it was a spa day and a singing cookie jar. I'm interested to find out what Jill went with in my absence."

"Talking about me again?" Jill asked appearing from behind.

"Yep"

"You two ok?" she asked handing Arizona a basket.

"Yeah we're super!"

"Zone?"

"We're alright honestly, we've decided to take the higher ground"

"Oh yeah, what's that like?"

"Not sure, tell you when we get there"

Jill smiled warmly, drumming her fingers on her clipboard before handing it out to Callie.

"What's that?"

"A present!"

"I prefer my present's gift wrapped and shiny" Arizona said.

"Trust me you'll like this one, I figured you'd insist on taking part so here" Jill pulled the sheet from the board and passed it to Callie "Keep it hidden"

Arizona pressed her head against Callie's shoulder scanning the piece of paper "No way!" she exclaimed.

"Consider it an 'I'm sorry everyone is an ass' gift"

"You're actually helping us cheat? I love you more and more everyday"

"Don't think of it as cheating, but more as a way of ensuring that neither David nor any of his friends are victorious"

Arizona looked back at the map Jill had drawn "What's that?" she asked pointing.

"That's you guys"

"Quite the artist" Arizona teased.

"Hey! Stick figures are about as far as my creative talent extends"

"Just kidding, why's my hair so big?"

"You've just woken up" Callie joked.

"Funny!"

"Anyway I'll let you get going…"

"What are those black spots?" Callie asked pressing her index finger to the page.

"Dead ends…ploys…points where it seems like you might find a scope but won't"

"Awesome!" Arizona yelped "Thanks Jill, if I weren't involved I'd kiss you"

"Thanks, but sexuality aside, you're just not my type"

"Hey, what's wrong with me I'm quite a catch?"

"You're hot and all but type A, too bossy!"

"Thanks!"

Callie was confused "What's a scope? Thought we were looking for eggs"

"It's not Easter Calliope!"

"A stethoscope, didn't Arizona tell you that's what you'll be collecting, toy ones. There're hundreds dotted around the grounds. The couple that finds the most in three hours wins…now go, I didn't spend the last hour making that map for someone else to win"

"Thanks Jill" Callie said.

"Yeah thanks, you're freaking amazing!"

"So I've been told, now go…"

(Bit of a serious chapter i know but i needed to write this so that what comes later on ties in and makes more sense. I hope you enjoyed it nonetheless! Please review and tell me your thoughts!)